Matchmaker
by fubukitasuku999
Summary: Border is a fun place for matchmaking, especially when you're a matchmaker. OC insert. [YumaXMidorikawa] [EmaXChika] [InukaiXOsamu] [JinXTachikawa] [OsamuXChika] [ChanoXFukisawa] [TachikawaXKazama] (Sorry summary sucks, my first fanfiction here, please forgive any mistakes. Thanks! :D) [Requests currently closed]
1. Chapter 1

Shou was making cream stew for dinner when the front door opened. 'Ah, Yuzu-kun. You're back. Dinner'll be ready shortly.'

'Ok, Shou.' Yuzuru took off his shoes and hurried to his room.

Shou lived with Yuzuru Ema, sniper of the Kageura Squad. Shou herself was a Border agent as well, but she had a sickness. A great freaking sickness that would keep her from working every few days. And today was just another meaningless day where she had to stay home because of that.

'Shou, are you feeling better now?'

'Yeah. I took my medicine already, so I'll get back to work tomorrow. Now hurry and eat, and thank me that I made cream stew.'

Yuzuru sat down as Shou served dinner. 'Thanks for the food.'

'You know,' Yuzuru said between spoonfuls of cream stew, 'if we only eat cream stew and rice for dinner every night,' he took another gulp, 'it's really unhealthy. You aren't getting a proper diet by eating snacks and cream stew only, are you? At least Border's cafeteria serves balanced diets.'

'Who cares,' mumbled Shou, 'cream stew is the best.' 'That I can't disagree to.' 'Anyways, talk about what Kage was doing today. Did he chop off someone's head again?'

And their evening quietly went by just like that.

The next morning Shou slammed the alarm clock as hard as she could (thank who knows that she didn't break it, she didn't want to get another one) and got ready for another day of training. Sunday. Training day. She set her wig, binded her chest and went to wake her lazy housemate slash classmate slash fellow Border agent up. 'Yuzu-kun, time to get up.' Her daily routine, well most of the time, was just that and making breakfast.

Arriving at Border, they both activated their triggers and went to sniping _training_ in the Kageura squad sniper training room. 'Hey~' Hikaru said under her kotatsu, 'you two are early today.' 'Hikari.' Yuzuru addressed the auburn haired operator and Shou nodded as a greeting. 'We'll be using the training room now.' Yuzuru headed towards said room but stopped. 'I mean, Hikari, could you please help set it up?'

'Right~' Hikari got up, more like crawled, towards the computer. 'You really can't do anything without me after all, huh?' She teased. 'Shut up.'

The two set down their stuff and focused on training. After a while, Shou spoke up. 'I'm still no good. What did you make this time?'

'Curry.' The image of a bowl of curry was made up by multiple shots on Yuzuru's target board.

'Nice~' Hikari's voice came out of nowhere. 'I want some curry too~'

Yuzuru scoffed. 'Who cares?'

'My heart~' Moaned Hikari. 'Whatever~ Training's over for today, wanna get lunch?'

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As the three headed over to the cafeteria, a certain 'puppy' and 'shrimp' came along.

'Ah, Ema-senpai, Shou-senpai, Hikari-senpai. If you're getting lunch, mind if we come along?' Yuma asked with his duck face.

'Sure~'

Shou was sure that Midorikawa was absolutely in love with his senpai. They just needed a little push before they became a couple, obviously. With Midorikawa making goo-goo eyes at his senpai halfway across the training room was obvious enough. Yuma looked like he didn't understand what love and being a couple was, so putting them together was easier than normal couples. _How long has it been since I pushed a couple together? Last time it was Konami-senpai and scruffy hottie-senpai. Now, that was easy-it only took a piece of doriyaki and boom! They were a couple._

As they sat down at the table, Shou grabbed Midorikawa and said that they would get food first. As they walker further away from the table, Shou said, 'You know, it's really obvious you like Kuga-kun.'

Midorikawa blushed and looked away. 'So? What did you want?' Shou smirked inwardly. 'Kuga-kun likes Japanese food a lot. You should get him some and tell him what you feel.'

'Really? Why should I listen to you? You're not a love expert or anything...'

'You know that Konami-senpai and the scruffy hottie got together last month?'

'Yeah, what about it?'

'I pushed them together.'

Midorikawa's annoyed face turned into one of surprise. 'Seriously? That's awesome! Alright, I'll try doing as you say. Thanks for the advice, Shou-senpai!'

And there goes another couple. Border sure was a fun place for matchmaking.


	2. Chapter 2

'You know, Yuzu-kun,' Shou stated as she laid on the couch watching TV, 'I thought about what you said yesterday, and I came to a decision.'

'Hmm? What is it?' Yuzuru said while washing the dishes of cream stew that they just had for dinner.

'I think I'm going to make hotdogs also, from now on.'

Yuzuru frowned. He turned off the sink and faced Shou. 'Even if you add hotdogs to the dinner menu, it's still unhealthy that we eat the same thing everyday. Plus, hotdogs aren't even considered "healthy" food...'

'It's fine.'

Yuzuru sighed as he turned the sink back on and continued to wash the dishes.

Of course, Shou wouldn't make hotdogs for no good reason. She could make salad instead (considering the fact that Yuzuru had wanted some 'healthy' food), but...

'I'm inviting Inukai-san for dinner tomorrow. I heard that he likes hotdogs, so I'll want him to try some.'

'That's fine with me...' Mumbled Yuzuru. 'Just tomorrow, right?'

'Nah, maybe...for a week or so. Just like how we can't resist the flavour of cream stew in our mouths, I think Inukai-san would have the same feeling about hotdogs...'

'Fine...Just one week, ok? He's a little too noisy for me...'

Shou got up from the couch and headed to her room. 'Thanks,' she said, and patted him on the shoulder as she left.

Another great afternoon at Border... Shou had left school by herself, as Yuzuru had cleaning duty after school. She threatened a few people for information, and got Inukai's phone number. She switched on her phone and dialed his number.

'Hello! This is Inukai! And this is...?'

'Kurogane Shou. Hello, Inukai-san.'

'Hello, Shou-kun! How did you get my number?'

'...You wouldn't want to know... Inukai-san, would you like to come over to my house to have dinner? We're serving cream stew and hotdogs.'

Shou could literally hear his eyes light up at the word 'hotdogs'. 'All right, Shou-kun! Um, would you mind meeting up with me after my training's over? I don't know the way to your house...'

'It's fine. I'll be waiting at the front gate at 6, since your training seems to end at 5:30.'

'All right! See you!' The line went dead.

Shou was now pretty sure Inukai would want to have dinner like this for a few days at least, so now she had plenty of time to invite a certain Megane-kun.


	3. Chapter 3

'These hotdogs are awesome! The chicken sausage one yesterday was already good, but these are like heaven!' Exclaimed Inukai, as he finished his last bite of his twentieth something hotdog. 'Shou-kun, how do you make these things so tasty? What secret recipe are you using?'

'Who knows,' answered Shou, taking a bite of her own hotdog. Yuzuru was also munching his down quietly, while eating his cream stew at the same time.

'Yuzuru-kun looks like he's enjoying them too! Shou-kun, do you mind if I come again tomorrow and spend the night here? I mean, if you're making hotdogs for breakfast as well. Would you mind?'

'It's fine,' she stated. 'But not today; tomorrow. And you'd better tell whoever's at your home that you're spending the night.' 'Thanks, Shou-kun!'

After Inukai had left, Yuzuru tapped Shou on the shoulder. 'Is it all right? He doesn't know that...'

'I'm a girl. Of course I know that, Yuzu-kun. It's all ok, really. If you have time to worry about me, go worry about yourself and your crush.'

Yuzuru blushed. 'I told you, it's not like that...'

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Shou walked towards Tamakoma 2's preparation room in Border's headquarters. Through some certain methods, she now knew that the squad was training in the battle rooms now. Arashiyama squad was helping them train today. Luckily, their training ended at around 5 something, just like Inukai. Midorikawa was also training with Kuga at the same place, so she could get them both as well.

Shou turned on her phone. Dailing a certain person's number, she spoke, 'Hello, Yuzu-kun? It seems like we'll be having more company tonight.'


	4. Chapter 4

The lounge was near empty as Shou entered; only a few people laying here and there on their laptops watching logs.

Reading the large screen in front of her, it flashed out in bright white words:

Kuga: 8

Midorikawa: 1

 _Typical_ , thought Shou as she sat down on a couch.

'Ah. Shou-senpai. Fancy meeting you here.' Osamu and Chika headed towards her.

'Mikumo-kun, Chika-kun. Just the right timing, I needed to ask you something.'

'What is it?' 'Do you want to have dinner at my place and stay the night? As thanks for last time you helped me. Kuga-kun and Midorikawa-kun can also come, if you don't mind, and Inukai-san already said yes.'

'If Osamu-kun is going, then I'm fine with it.' Chika stated with a smile. 'But, what was the "thanks" about...?'

'Ah, that...'

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Shou wandered aimlessly in the seemingly same and endless corridors of Border. Today was one of the days she was just barely alright to go training. After taking a few turns, she sweatdropped. I'm back at the same place again...

A sudden pain went through her head. Crap, I'm not gonna get out of this place soon, seems like I'm gonna be stuck here for a while...

Her head hit the ground with a loud thump. She sighed as her limbs became useless, sprawled across the floor. She decided to go to sleep instead.

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'Sh...pa...Sho...se...ai...'

She opened her right eye, keeping her left closed behind her bangs like always.

'Shou-senpai! Shou-senpai! Wake up!' A person was now holding her head.

'Mikumo-kun...' Stated Shou, still sounding groggy from the sleepiness.

'Shou-senpai! Thank goodness! Are you alright? What do you need me to do?'

 _Always a sucker for those in need..._ 'M 'fine.' She mumbled. 'If you want to do anything for me, just carry me to a place where I can lay down. I'll be fine after a while.'

'If you say so...'

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'I'm really grateful to Mikumo-kun for helping me out then.'

Osamu blushed a little, took off his glasses, wiped them, and put them back on. 'I just did what anyone would have done...'

'Still being a sucker for those in need, huh?' 'Kuga! Since when have you been standing there?'

'Hey!' Exclaimed Midorikawa from behind Kuga. 'Shou-senpai, I'm glad you're fine.' Midorikawa glanced towards Osamu with a menacing glare (causing the latter to shudder in fear). 'Osamu didn't do anything to you, right...?'

'Wha- what? Of course not! We're both guys, right? And I would never do that to anybody-!'

 _They still didn't notice she was a girl, thankfully._

'Would you all like to come to my place to have dinner? You're also free to stay the night. Inukai-kun already told me that he's coming.'

'Oh yes of course I would love to!' Shouted Midorikawa in joy. 'We get to eat Shou-senpai's cooking! Which day is it?'

'Next Friday, since all of us have school.'

Chika waved and Kuga walked backwards as they all left. 'Thanks in advance, Shou-senpai!'

 _Oh my, let's see how this all turns out._


	5. Chapter 5

Inukai was the first to get in. 'Pardon for the intrusion!' The ones following him muttered or shouted the same line as they took off their shoes.

Yuzuru arched an eyebrow. 'Seems like I misunderstood your understanding of "more company".'

Shou entered last, taking her hood off. 'You just don't understand my understanding of "more", not my problem.'

Yuzuru huffed. 'Whatever.'

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Now they were all seated at the dining table, waiting for Shou to serve dinner.

'Thanks for the food!' Shouted Inukai and Midorikawa.

Yuzuru was half a beat late. '...food.'

The dining table was full of joyful shouting, sounds of scraping, loud burping, and blissful sighing.

'Feel free to use the bath, I'm fine with going last,' stated Shou.

Kuga answered with his duck face, 'it's fine, we all had our baths already.'

'Oh? That's good for you. Yuzu-kun, you go first. I'll set up the futons for you all in the big room.'

'Big room?'

Shou sighed. 'Yuzu-kun, explain.'

'I already took mine before you all came. Since my father doesn't come home a lot, so me and Shou take turns sleeping in the only room and big room, which is my father's. And Shou is very lucky that he's got the room for tonight. So, I'll be sleeping with you all.' Shou caught a little blush forming on Yuzuru's cheeks. _Ah, seems like you're enjoying youth, Yuzu-kun._

'Alright, big room, everyone!'

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Shou switched off the lights of the big room and headed to the bathroom. She sighed, finally time to relax. Taking off her wig, her elbow length hair fell softly on her shoulders. _Hope I don't fall asleep in the bath._

Thank god she didn't.

Shou let out a long sigh in the bath. _I wonder how they'll look like after sleeping together..._


	6. Chapter 6

After slamming her alarm clock (without breaking it), Shou headed down the staircase to the kitchen. She didn't wear her wig though, because no one would wake at 4:30 for no good reason. Well, Shou had one: making breakfast.

Who makes breakfast at 4:30, you ask?

She does.

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Kuga didn't want to move.

Midorikawa's arms were linked around his waist; his breath hot on his neck. He had agreed to 'sleep' with them. Well, he was just literally lying there on the futon, enjoying the silent company of Midorikawa and the others.

Faint footsteps echoed in the corridor outside. _A burglar...? No way, it's already dawn. Then who is it?_

Despite not wanting to leave Midorikawa's warm hug (he had to admit that felt good, but he didn't know why), he slipped out of his grasp and headed towards the door.

He popped his head outside. A hooded figure was making down the corridor. _Shou-senpai...?_

Kuga hummed to catch the person's attention, but soft enough not to wake the others up.

The person turned around and faced him, but it was still too dark to see their face.

'Shou-senpai?'

'Kuga?'

Kuga sighed (in relief, or of his own stupidness to doubt people, he didn't know). 'Why are you awake at 4 something in the morning?'

'Making breakfast.'

'Would you mind if I said that I wanted to help? As thanks for cooking us dinner and letting us stay the night.'

'Really? I don't mind. In fact, thanks. But you gotta wait a moment, I have to get something from my room. You can get to the kitchen first.'

'Ok.'

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Shou hurried up the stairs again to get her wig. _That was close._ As soon as she was done, she went back down, finding Kuga in the same place.

'Kuga? What are you standing here for?'

Kuga made a duck face (though Shou couldn't see it). 'I got lost.'

Shou almost gave an amused grin.

Almost.

'Follow me.'

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Apparently, Kuga was a total klutz at cooking. He managed to (accidentally) break two dishes, burn half of the sausages (an 'admirable' feat, Shou thought), and pour the milk all over the floor (that took a long time to clean up).

By the time they were finished, it was already almost 7. It was a miracle that no one was woken up by all that noise.

'Shou-senpai, I'm sorry for causing you so much trouble. Seems like I couldn't help you in any way.'

'It's fine,' she waved her hand in his face, 'it was amusing to watch how a person can actually manage to break two dishes in a row.'

Kuga gave his duck face again while scratching the back of his head. 'Hehe...'

'Time to wake them up.'

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Originally, the futons were set up for the guests in this way: from left to right, Osamu, Chika, and Yuzuru were in the upper row. The lower row was Midorikawa, Kuga and Inukai.

But now, they were all messed up.

Osamu was hugging Chika in an overprotective way. Extreme tension lingered in the gap between Chika and Yuzuru. It was amazing how tension could exist when they were both sleeping. Inukai was grabbing at Osamu's legs, with the latter trying to escape his grip. Midorikawa was hugging Kuga's pillow (presumed that he thought that the pillow was Kuga instead).

It was to Shou, well, something like, a cute scene.

 _Oh my_. Shou took out her phone and took a photo, sending it to Kuga and Yuzuru only with the words 'don't send it out' and 'oh my' respectively.

She pulled the curtains.


	7. Chapter 7

Midorikawa yawned as he hung onto Kuga, sitting down at the dining table. 'Gud mawning~'

'Morning.' Replied Shou as she placed breakfast in front of him and Kuga.

'Thankz~' came back as Midorikawa's barely hearable reply.

'Thanks for the food!'

Inukai was already fully awake, stretching as he sat down. 'Woke up to a nice morning, but dunno why my bones hurt like hell...'

Osamu readjusted his glasses. 'Mine, too.'

'Who knows,' said Shou, inwardly smirking.

A loud beep made Yuzuru take out his phone. 'What the-'

'Language.'

'Sorry.' Yuzuru glanced towards Shou with a cold glare, but she pretended not to see.

'Yuzu-kun, after breakfast, I'm going to Tamakoma for a little visit. And of course, I'll train as well.'

A while after Shou had joined Border in the Tamakoma branch, Commander Kido thought that Tamakoma had been getting too many strong members, so he switched out Shou and asked her (more like commanded) her to join headquarters instead. Shou was fine with that, though Yotaro was extremely saddened about it and made her promise to visit every month (he literally cried a river, not that he was going to admit it though).

'Alright,' replied Yuzuru.

'Shou-senpai, mind if we go together?'

'Sure.'

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Fortunately, the run to Tamakoma wasn't too long, since they decided to jog there as training. If Osamu was in his trion body with his sweat replaced by trion, he would've bailed out already due to extreme trion loss.

'Are you sure you're alright, Osamu?' Asked Kuga.

'I'm pretty sure I'm fine.' He answered between pants.

 _Totally not fine._

Chika was already at the door. 'Come on!'

As she opened the door, they were greeted by the sight of Konami yelling at Karasuma.

Again.

'You tricked me, didn't you!?'

They all let out a sigh.

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Yotaro sat next to Shou with a piece of doriyaki in his hands. Raijinmaru was next to him as always.

Usami broke the awkward silence. 'Welcome back!'

'...'

'Yeah...'

 _What's with the lack of enthusiasm?_ Asked Usami inwardly.

'Anyways. Shou-kun, I'll be checking your trigger later on. Are you still using your custom made Trigger?'

'Yes. Shiori-chan, would you mind if I asked you to increase the number of slots in my Trigger? I want to add some new ones.'

'Hai hai! Coming right up!' Said Usami as she saluted.

'Shou-senpai, how does your Trigger look like?'

'It's a scythe,' answered Shou. 'It's kind of like Konami-senpai's Sogetsu's connected version but with no connector and blade version.'

'I see,' Kuga said, making his duck face while crossing his arms.

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'I'm done~!' announced Usami, stretching her arms. 'Here's your newly modified Trigger, Shou!'

'Thanks. You mind if I try it out now?'

'If you need a sparring partner, I'm more than willing to do that.' Said Konami, her arms crossed and leaning on the wall. 'We still haven't settled out last 10 round match yet!'

'Thanks, Konami-senpai. But that 10 round match... I thought it was a tie?'

'Huh! No way! Shiori, what was the result?'

'Hai hai, it was 5-5, a tie!'

'No way!' Shouted Konami, She pointed at Shou immediately. 'Shou! You're having another ten rounds with me! Now!'

Shou sighed heavily. 'Do we have to?'

'Yes. And now!' Konami exclaimed while pulling Shou with her towards the training rooms.

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Osamu watched in awe as axe hit scythe. _They're totally on a different level...!_ 'What's the current score?' He asked.

'Shou 4, Konami 4,' answered Usami.

Seems like he had a long way to go.

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Shou spun her scythe in front of her, blocking Konami's Asteroid effectively. 'Seems like you've been training a lot lately, Konami-senpai.'

'Of course I have,' she stated in a matter of fact tone while continuing to attack Shou with her Sogetsu's axe form. 'I really want to chop you down right here and now.'

'Oh? Let's see you try then.' They both charged at each other, swinging their weapons.

 _Konami, bail out._

 _Phew. Seems like I was lucky this time._

'Shou! I'm gonna slice you up in the next round! Be prepared for that!'

 _She's always been like that, huh? Good for her, she never changes._


	8. Chapter 8

Shiori hummed softly. 'Seems like it's another draw, then!'

Konami and Shou came out simultaneously, back in their own clothes. 'Man! I really wanted to slice you up even more, Shou!'

'Why slice? You could chop, or whack, or even just simply slash at me.'

'Whatever! I'm so gonna beat you next time!'

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'Konami.'

'What, Torimaru?' said Konami, sulking in a corner.

'That last round was really close, actually.'

'Really?' Konami sprung right up. She pointed at Shou, shouting, 'I'm gonna win next time!'

'That was a lie.'

Shou sweatdropped as Konami held Osamu in a headlock. 'You tricked me, didn't you?' Osamu's glasses went white from steam (or from the light or anything, Shou didn't know) while Chika tried to convince Konami to let Osamu go. Kuga was leaning against the wall, having his duck face on like he didn't give a damn (not that he really did, though).

Karasuma spoke up again. 'Chika, do you like Osamu?'

Konami let Osamu out of her headlock. 'Where did that come from?'

Chika blushed as she stuttered. 'No, it's not like that! It's just that I'm very grateful to Osamu-kun, so I want to help him in any way I can...'

'Are you sure it's not?' Asked Shou.

'Eh? Of course!'

'Then look at this.' Shou showed Chika and Osamu the picture she took of them sleeping the night before, while blocking the other's sight.

Both Osamu and Chika flushed bright red. Osamu looked like he wanted to say something, but decided not to at the last second, making him look like a bright red goldfish. Chika was attempting to hide her face with her hands, but failed at the attempt as her ears were red as well.

 _Oh my._

'Shou-senpai, did you show them that photo?' Asked Kuga with a smirk on his face.

'Yup. Seems like they're pretty shocked though... That's good.'

Osamu's face had returned to its normal colour by now, and he glared at Shou, perhaps wanting her to feel guilty, but failed miserably.

Konami asked with a curious face. 'What on earth did you show them...?'

'Who knows?'


	9. Chapter 9

'Jin-san! Jin-san! Jin-san!'

'Hey, Shun.' Midorikawa danced around him, chanting his name over and over again. His reply wasn't as cheerful as usual, though.

'Jin-san.'

'Shou.' Jin nodded his head in greeting.

Midorikawa and Shou were lazing around in the cafeteria, when Jin had passed by. Midorikawa switched over to 'Jin-san is my master and I'm his puppy' mode almost immediately, while Shou watched, amused. The three were in their real bodies, though.

'Jin-san, you look like you haven't been sleeping well.' said Shou, ignoring Midorikawa's mini dance.

'Really? Don't I always look like that? Seems like drinking coffee before sleeping really was a bad idea...' he replied (in a sleepy tone).

'Jin-san! Let's have a practice match? Please?'

'Sorry, Shun. I'm heading over to see Tachikawa right now, so maybe another time.'

'Aww, then it can't be helped. Jin-san! Please have a match with me next time!'

'Sure.' Jin patted him on the head and waved goodbye to Shou.

 _Seems like fun..._

'Midorikawa, I have something to do now, so bye for now.'

'Bye then!'

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Shou followed Jin to see Tachikawa. She didn't trust her own instincts, she would probably get lost and end up in front of the Kageura squad room. For some reason, everytime she got lost, she would end up there, and one of the few people there would guide her to whatever place she was going.

Jin's footsteps abruptly stopped. Shou kept walking silently, and peered around the corner. Jin was opening the door already. Rushing over to the door while tapping on her phone furiously (but still silently), she threw a 360 degree webcam inside, right next to the door. How she got it? When you have lots of photos and videos for blackmailing, anyone can give you anything you want.

(Dear reader, don't try this. This might be illegal or such in your country, city, town, or wherever you are living. This is Mikado City, a fictional place. Let us assume that it is legal there. Thank you very much.)

Turning a few corners, she sat down on a couch next to the vending machines. Tapping on her phone again, the screen showed a live 'broadcast' of what was happening inside the Tachikawa squad room. She slid her headphones on.

Jin's goggles slash glasses were on the table, which was unusual for him. Jin himself was held in Tachikawa's embrace, burying his face in his shoulder.

'What did you see?' Tachikawa asked softly.

'I don't want to talk about it...' Jin's cracked voice came back.

'Alright.' Tachikawa stayed still, holding Jin tightly.

'Don't look, Tachikawa, don't look.'

'I'm not looking,' he said as he patted Jin on the back several times.

After a while of silence, Tachikawa let go of Jin. 'Better?'

'Better,' he answered, while rubbing his eyes on his sleeve.

With Jin's side effect, it sure was hard for him.

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'Kunichika-san. Sorry I'm late.'

The door slid open to reveal Kunichika holding a gaming console. 'Shou-kun! I didn't wait long, and I've got everything ready! No worries! Now come on in,' she said, as she pulled Shou inside. 'Does C*ll of D*ty suit your tastes?'

'Yes, and thank you Kunichika-san for the invitation.' Shou glanced around the Tachikawa Squad operation room. Aha, there's the camera. She picked it up gently and quietly, hoping not to alarm Kunichika. 'Where's Tachikawa-san and Izumi-san?'

Kunichika's fingers danced around. 'When I came back, Tachikawa was just leaving. He said that he was gonna do a ten rounds with Jin. As for Izumi, he's probably just hanging around in the lounge.'

'I see.'

'Why do you ask?'

'No particular reason.'


	10. Chapter 10

School work.

A pain in the butt.

For most people.

Shou was fine with that, but what troubled her about school was...

How not to get lost.

Third Mikado City Junior High School and Senior School were actually built together. It was a small campus, to be honest, but the corridors were confusing as hell, though not as confusing as those in Border headquarters.

Shou was lost.

Again.

Yuzuru had to see a teacher (he was failing math), so she had lost her tour guide. Lunch break was almost over. Shou glanced at the nearest sign-she was in the Senior School section, not the Junior one where she had classes.

'Crap,' she said while cursing mentally, as the bell rang to signal the end of lunch.

Footsteps were coming her way. A girl with long brown hair with bangs covering her left eye walked around the corner. 'Aha! I knew I heard someone. What are you doing here? Lunch break's over.' She then glanced at her male school uniform. 'Are you from the junior section...?'

'Yup. I think I got lost.'

The girl sweatdropped. 'How did you even get lost in such a small place like this...? Come on, I'll take you back.'

'There's no need, I'll just get out of the school first and enter from the main entrance again.'

'Of course not,' the girl huffed, 'I wouldn't mind being a nice senpai to my kouhai. What's your name?'

'Kurogane.'

'Kurogane-kun, nice to meet you. Call me Chano. I'm a second year in the junior high section, and you?'

'Class two of the second year in the junior section...' _Chano? Isn't that the name of a unit in B rank?_

'Chano-senpai, are you from Border?'

'Huh?' She looked startled. 'How did you know? Don't tell me you're like those stalker people on the net who memorise all the Border agent's names...'

'Of course not. Is your full name Chano Makoto?'

'Ehh? How did you know?'

Pretty sure she thought that Shou was a stalker by now.

'Are you leader of B rank Chano squad, who are training to be the next PR unit?'

'How in the name of... How do you know all that?'

'A pleasure to meet you, Chano-senpai. My name is Kurogane Shou, and individual A rank agent from Border. Call me Shou, please.'

'Kurogane Shou... No wonder why the name sounded familiar!'

 _Now the identity matter was settled. Phew._

'Does Fujisawa-san come to this school as well?'

'Yeah, but he's in class right now. Aren't I supposed to get you back to your class? Crap, I nearly forgot!'

Another voice cut in. 'Makoto? Seems like I was right, you _are_ here. Who's this?'

'Ah, Fujisawa!' Chano explained the current situation, while Fujisawa nodded in understanding.

'Chano-senpai, are you two dating?'

Amused by the red faces of the two, Shou continued, 'seems like it.'

'It's not like that...' muttered Chano, playing with the hem of her skirt. Fujisawa was busy burying his face in his hands. 'Lets just bring you back, we all don't want to be that late.'

'Then I'll be going back first!' Shouted Fujisawa, as he rushed back.

Chano dragged Shou to her classroom, politely addressing the teacher while explaining that Shou had got lost and she had found her, so she brought her back.

Once Chano had left, the teacher told Shou to sit back down in her seat. Yuzuru, who sat in the seat next to her, poked her on the shoulder while whispering, 'you really got lost without me, huh?'

'Whatever.' She answered, taking out her books. _Gotta push those two together now._


	11. Chapter 11

'Yuzuru-kun, Shou-kun, would you like to join us for lunch today?'

Chika was in the same class as the two of them, with Shou sitting in the back corner, Yuzuru's next to hers, and Chika's two seats in front is Shou's. Yuzuru would sneak glances towards Chika every few minutes, with Shou observing, amused.

'On the rooftop? Isn't it a little too cold for that? It's still the start of February.' Yuzuru asked.

'We eat up there all the time,' answered Chika with a brighter smile than before, 'if you eat with us, I'll be happy.'

Yuzuru blushed a little. 'I guess it's fine then...'

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'Osamu-kun! Yuma-kun! Izuho-chan!'

'Chikako! Eh? Yuzuru-kun? And you are...?'

'Kurogane Shou. Nice to meet you.'

'Natsume Izuho.' Izuho sat closer to Chika, and patted the space next to her. 'Here, sit.'

'Thank you...' Thanked Yuzuru as the two sat down.

Shou glanced at Osamu's, Kuga's, and Chika's bentos. 'Who helped you make all of them? They're literally identical.'

'I did,' Chika answered shyly. 'What's wrong with them...?'

'Nothing, just wondering who was such an amazing cook and put all the effort into making those. Mikumo-kun and Kuga-kun are lucky to have such wonderful bentos.'

'Thank you,' Chika blushed a little. 'They both seem to like it very much...'

Shou and Yuzuru's bentos seemed to catch her eye, as she asked, 'What about yours, Shou-senpai? Who made yours and Yuzuru-kun's?'

'I did, since this lazy head doesn't even know how to make scrambled eggs.'

'I do know, and you're more of a lazy head than I am.' Yuzuru retorted.

'Whatever. Chika-kun, would you like to exchange bentos? We haven't started eating yet, and I'd love to give some comments about how your bento is...'

'Really? It's fine, thank you in advance.'

'YOU GOT A PHONE CALL! YOU GOT A PHONE CALL! YOU GOT A-'

'Sorry,' muttered Shou as she put Chika's bento down. 'For the bad choice of ringtone and volume. I forgot to set it on silent mode.'

Picking up the call, Shou placed it next to her since she knew what was going to happen.

'SHOU-CHAN! I'M COMING BACK NEXT WEEEEEEEK! DID YOU MISS MEEE?'

The students on the rooftop all covered their ears as the person calling screamed.

Shou picked her phone up. 'First off, no calling me -chan. Next, I didn't miss you. At all.'

'Such cruelty, Shou-chan!' The caller answered, in a much softer tone than before, much like normal volume now.

'When will you ever learn...?'

'Never!'

'So, you're coming back next week? Which day?'

'Exactly seven days later, not counting today. Three o'clock in the afternoon!'

'Saturday, three o'clock. You want me to pick you up at the airport, or do you want to meet up somewhere?'

'At your place! I'll rush there, so no worries.'

'How the hell do you even remember where we live when you've been gone like, for two years?'

'Two years and thirty six days to be exact. Because, I am the awesome Su-'

'Alright then. I'm at school, so, bye.' She switched off her phone and put it in her pocket.

'Is it him?' asked Yuzuru, voice full of dread.

'Yup.' Yuzuru sighed for ten seconds. 'That guy's gonna kill me for sure...'

'Shou-senpai, who was that?'

'Someone you'll never want to meet, but probably will later on. Hope you guys don't mind his shouting. Anyways, back to the bento.'

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'So, um, how was it?'

'It's good. I suggest adding a little more salt on the egg roll. Otherwise, it's really good.'

'Thank you! Shou-senpai, your cooking was good as always!'

'Thanks.'


	12. Chapter 12

Yuzuru made his way down the stairs. Shou was still on the couch, gaming on their Pl*y St*tion.

'Still gaming?' he asked, groggily.

'Yup, it's still fifteen minutes after midnight.' she answered, not looking away from the screen once at all. 'Since he's coming back, he won't be able to record videos so I'll have to do that for now. Why are you up?'

'Bathroom.'

'... Hurry up and go, then.'

He continued walking, as Shou returned to her narration of the video. She'd been an insomniac ever since her knew her, which was when they were little kids. How she survived with three hours of sleep every weekday, he didn't know, but for sure, he needed his sleep. _When he comes back, I'll have trouble sleeping._

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'Where are you going, boy? Elementary schoolers like you shouldn't be on the street alone. Are you lost?'

'I'm fine, I'm not an elementary schooler. I'm 14, by the way. Thanks for the concern, old man!' A short, or you could say, tiny boy with messy dark brown hair waved at an old man who was in shock. The boy continued walking down the street, his ahoge bouncing with every step. Humming to himself, he thought about how his 'family' would react when they saw him come back. They probably would laugh at his height, seeing that he didn't grow any taller in the past two years. They would pay his ahoge just like bouncing a basketball, and perhaps, ruin his self esteem. Sighing to himself, he stopped in front of a certain house and rang the doorbell. With his brightest smile plastered on his face, he rushed in and hugged the person who came to open the door.

'I'm home!'


	13. Chapter 13

'Let's get ready for this. Who's opening the door?'

'Me...'

'Thank you, Yuzu-kun. Then I'll be the one to help you get out of his strangle, then.'

'All right...' Yuzuru definitely wasn't hyped for this. Though he was happy he was finally coming back, he wasn't looking forward to being strangled. The doorbell rang.

'Ok, get in position. On my count, one, two, three!'

Yuzuru flung the door open on 'three', while bracing himself for the impact.

'I'm home!' The boy screamed as he flung himself onto him.

'My turn,' said Shou, as she stepped forward to untangle the human mess in front of her.

'Yuzuru-tan!' The boy shouted with his ahoge bouncing, 'I'm home!'

'Yeah, yeah,' he answered, while telling Shou to close the door.

'Where's Shou-chan?' The boy turned his head, and spotted Shou at the door. With Yuzuru still in his grasp, he flung himself towards Shou. 'Shou-chan!'

The three all ended up on the floor, with the boy laughing hysterically. 'Seems like you two haven't changed at all!'

'Get off,' Yuzuru grumbled, as he untangled the boy's hand from his leg, and lifting his other leg to let Shou's head free. 'You better get up now, before you make a mess.'

'Ok!' The boy bounced up, his ahoge straightened and curled again, while letting go of the two.

'Lively as ever, Hiro.'

'Of course, Shou-chan! It's because, I am the awesome Suzuki Hiro!'

'Yeah, yeah, even your ahoge is the same as ever.' Yuzuru stated, as he bounced Hiro's ahoge.

'Whatever.' Hiro pouted.

'Still a kid, so same as ever.'

'Hey!'


	14. Chapter 14

The next day was a fairly relaxing one. Yuzuru took the day off, his reason being 'my friend is back from overseas so I want to make him feel welcome'. Yuzuru and Shou were playing multiplayer online (they had two Pl*y St*tions, due to the pay from their jobs), while recording at the same time. Hiro was leaning on the couch from behind, playing with Shou's hair, and messing up Yuzuru's as well.

'Hiro, your turn,' said Yuzuru, as he handed the console over. 'And stop messing with my hair.'

'All right,' Hiro flopped onto the couch. 'Then it's your turn to mess with Shou-chan's hair.'

'I won't, since your playing with your ahoge seems to be a better option.' With that said, he bounced it a few times. Hiro yelled, 'Stop it! Shou-Chan, help me!'

As her in-game character died for the umpteenth time, Shou sighed and undid all the knots I her hair made by Hiro. 'How about no? Since you messed up my hair and Yuzuru's as well, why don't you suffer the same fate as us?' Yuzuru high fived her as agreement.

'You two are just bullying me,' Hiro pouted.

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'Today's snipers' joint training will be set in City Landscape B, the weather condition being rain. Each sniper has been paired up with an individual operator. Your goal is to hit as may people as possible. Repeats are not allowed. Being hit doesn't matter. Is all of this clear? I assume yes, so transfer will begin in ten minutes. You have time to think up your own strategy.'

'So, you have any strategy?'

'Nope. I'll just go with whatever I feel like doing.'

'Fine. Do you want me to change the other sub triggers?' Hiro asked, his head resting on his arms.

'Nah, it'll be fine.' 'Good luck, then.'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

 _Transferring in 3, 2, 1._

Opening her eyes, Shou found herself in a wrecked room. Looking out of the window, the sight of a ruined city. _Lucky me, the top floor of a fairly high building_. She positioned her Lightning on the windowsill, and Hiro's playful voice came in in her headphones. 'Shou-chan! Shou-chan! I have the map of the landscape! Do you need it?'

'Yeah, send it over.' She replied into her mic.

The map of the city ruins came into sight. Apparently, there were some taller buildings as well, and some were quite near. She focused back on sniping, and spotted an agent in white lying down on a rooftop a few hundred meters away. _Probably a C-rank_.

After hitting her target, Shou looked around if any other agents were around. Confirming that there weren't, she went down the stairs two by two, and sprinted towards her next sniping location: a hotel with only half of it remaining. The building looked peculiar; it looked as if it were cut in half.

'Ten floors should be enough,' Hiro suggested. 'All right.'

Footsteps echoed above her. _Another sniper?_ Slipping through a door, Shou waited in the shadows. _I'll hit them when they're downstairs_. She laid down and positioned her Lightning once again. The sniper appeared downstairs. As Shou pulled the trigger, the sniper looked backwards and readied his own rifle. _Yuzu-kun?_ Letting her bullet hit himself, he shot her back.

Hiro whistled. 'I feel the love~'

'No, you idiot. I'm not interested in your corny love jokes.'

'Aww~ Fine~ You're just too embarrassed to admit it.'

'... Do you want to die?'

Hiro gulped over the intercom. 'No, thanks.'


	15. Chapter 15

Joint practice had ended. The results weren't surpirising: Narasaka being first like always, the same people after him, Yuzuru somewhere rather front and Shou swimming in the middle of everyone.

Hiro and Shou walked side by side in the training hall. Akane was sighing in front of an expressionless Narasaka, Izuho's cat on Touma's pompadour with Chika giggling next to him, and everything was just plain normal.

Except for Hiro.

Said person was currently going nuts and sprouting random nonsense (such as, cheesy pick-up lines which no one would ever use), and laughing hysterically to himself after each sentence. His ahoge bounced with every step, attracting the sight of many, which further led to them thinking that he was no longer sane.

'Yu~zu~ru~! You know what? I have to show you the prettiest person I've _ever_ seen~'

Yuzuru sighed as he turned around to stare at him. 'Don't tell me it's you.'

Hiro chuckled in a very inhuman way, and pushed Shou in front of him. 'You're so silly~! Of course it's not me! Shou-chan!'

Shou suppressed the urged to sigh (she sighed too much nowadays). 'Yuzu-kun, he's just too bored.'

The brunette nodded and shook Hiro away, pulling Shou with him. 'Don't blame us if you can't remember the way back, Hiro.'

Hiro laughed hysterically and collapsed onto the floor. 'You know what? I'm _so_ bored~!' Onlookers stared at him for a while, before continuing what they were doing.

Hikari stretched as she joined them. 'Hiro-tan really is just too bored, huh~?' She then patted them both on the back. 'I feel you.'

Hiro got up on his feet again, and bounced himself over. 'You know what, Shou-chan?'

'What?'

'Ill introduce to you the prettiest boy I've _ever_ met! Yuzuru! Come're~! This, is Yuzuru! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!' And after that, he face planted on the floor again.

Everyone stared at him. _He was_ absolutely _insane_.

Hikari sweatdropped. '...Let's just go... Who's hungry?'

'...Me...'

Hikari grabbed them both and stomped towards the cafeteria, while explaining why people should talk more enthusiastically.


	16. Chapter 16

Yuzuru listened to the raindrops falling on his hood as he made his way. _Pitter-patter. Pitter-patter._ A couple of kids passed by him, splashing into large puddles of water and laughing cheerfully. He didn't even bother dodging; he wasn't in the mood to do anything. _If only my past self was like that... If I had been a better student, maybe Hatohara-senpai would have a reason to stay... Even if I_ couldn't, _if I were more cheerful, her life here could have been better before she left..._ He stopped in front of a certain shop, he pulled down his hood and walked in.

'One bowl of chicken ramen please...'

'Yes sir! Coming ri~ght up!'

He sat down at the table at the corner of the shop, lowering his sight and fidgeting with his fingers, once again lost in thought.

'...Yuzuru-kun?'

 _Yuzuru..._

Did _I just hear that?_ He pretended that he didn't. The ramen shop boss came over with a cheerful grin. 'Sir, here's your chicken ramen!'

'Chicken ramen?'

 _...Is that chicken ramen I see?_

His raised his head to look at the seat opposite of him. He let out a relieved sigh, and focused on eating his ramen. _It's just my imagination..._

Footsteps thudded in his direction. _I'm getting hallucinations..._

'Yuzuru-kun, are you feeling all right?' A hand gently pushed away his bangs and touched his forehead. 'You're burning! And you're dripping wet!'

The chicken ramen in front of him blurred. _Huh...?_ _Why can't I see clearly?_

'Boss! Could we get a cold wet towel please? I think this customer's got a fever!' Someone took away his chopsticks and made him sit back further in his chair. Sounds of tables being pushed, worried whispers, and someone saying 'don't worry' were barely audible to him.

Then he was being carried. He figured probably upstairs, where the boss lived. 'We need you to get dry first,' said the boss, as he took another clean towel, dried him up and started helping him change into new clothes.

And then he feel asleep.

Or unconscious.

And when he woke again, it was already dark outside. He struggled to lift his hand, and looked st his watch: 1:24 A.M. His other hand was being suppressed by another one. He rolled his head to the side. He was pretty sure the heat radiating from his face was hotter than the fried noodles he had burned the first time he tried cooking. Tamakoma's cannon, aka Amatori Chika, was asleep.

Right. Next. To. Him.

And their hands were touching.

Cue a mental volcano explosion in his head and all the magma and lava being plastered on his face.

He blamed it on the teenage hormones. And he could swear if anyone walked in that second, his life would be ruined. _What the hell happened?_ Attempting to get up without waking his student, he slipped out of the covers, but fell face flat on the ground instead. _Curses to my headache_.

The sound of him falling woke Chika up. 'Yuzuru-kun! You're awake? Do you still feel dizzy? Or uncomfortable? Oh, and I already called Shou-senpai, so don't worry. By the way, why did you ignore me in the ramen shop?'

'That was you?' He gave a small humph. 'I heard Hatohara-senpai talking to me... You know, you have a voice similar to hers. I thought I was hallucinating... Hatohara-senpai used to bring me here every week; she loved the ramen here. And now I just can't stop coming here on a weekly basis; old habits die hard, I suppose...'

Chika beamed at him. 'Reiji-san brings me here a lot too! Something about the boss giving him a 75% discount...'

'I see... You know what? I'll let you sleep on the bed, I'll go downstairs and sleep on the couch.' Chika opened her mouth but was cut off by Yuzuru. 'No complaints. And no, I won't sleep with you.'

And so he headed down, leaving a bright faced Chika.


	17. Chapter 17

The door of their peaceful (not) home flew open, and a light haired adult leaped in.

'YU~ZU~RU~! I'm home~!' The man latched himself onto Yuzuru.

Yuzuru squirmed as an attempt to escape from the man's bear hug. 'Dad, let go of me...'

'How's my son been? Where's Shou-chan?' He then spotted an escaping Shou and a creeping Hiro. 'Shou-chan! Hiro-tan!'

The two sidestepped and stared at the man who plunged right between them.

'You'd better settle down, dad.'

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'And so, this English guy just went up to me and said hello to me in Japanese. Such a fool I was, I thought he only spoke English!'

Yuzuru's dad, or Ema-san, was telling the three of his journeys around the world. His recent trip to England was rather uninteresting. It was almost exactly the same as his last one.

'And so, I didn't bring you peeps any souvenirs.'

Hiro 'awwed' while the other two just facepalmed.

The front door was banged on.

'Who the hell?' Ema got up from the couch and opened the door, only for someone to crash in.

'Does this always happen?'

'No,' Yuzuru answered. 'The only time we had this was Shou.'

'Oh~ho! I still remember that day when Shou-chan came crashing in.'

Shou crossed her arms. 'Stop talking about me and focus on the guy. He's hurt, isn't he?'

'Right! Poor guy, what hit him this hard?' Ema pulled the guy in and locked the door.

'Wait. He isn't bleeding.' Hiro pointed out, and listened for a heartbeat. 'His heart's stopped beating? What the-'

A groan cut his sentence. '... We'd better lay him down on the couch.'

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The light-haired boy had finally woken up.

'Is this Meeden?' He asked. His voice, Hiro noted, was rather high-pitched for a male's. But not as high as a female's. Just, somewhere in between, and he ain't being sexist.

'Sure it is.' Yuzuru replied in a 'matter of fact' tone.

Ema, however, shouted, 'WELCOME TO MEEDEN, FRIEND!' They could almost see the imaginary sparkles that were raining down on his head.

The boy ignored him and continued. 'I suppose this is Mikado City, then?''

'Yes it is. What do you want?'

He sat up and glared at them all, but not coldly. 'I want to join Border.'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

'So, once I get back, I get a Neighbour crashing into my door. Lucky me,' Ema half-joked after they had listened to the boy's story.

He apparently had amnesia and couldn't remember anything except his name, and the fact that he was a Neighbour and wanted to join Border.

Hiro's ahoge bounced as he flipped down on the couch next to the Neighbour, or aka Kobayashi Takeru, as he had introduced himself.

'Why fight Neighbours when you're a Neighbour yourself?' He asked. 'Also, why don't you have a heartbeat?'

Takeru fiddled with his eyepatch, as if he were shy. 'I don't know, I just want to. And as to your second question, I have no idea myself too.'

Hiro 'ahh'ed as a response. 'I see...'

Yuzuru and Shou eyed each other. 'Should we bring him to HQ, or Tamakoma first?'

'Tamakoma first. Though HQ would get mad at us for not telling them. Or put simply, just Kido-san and Kinuta-san.'

Hiro stroked his chin. 'I can see that happening... Because my side effe-'

'Shut up. You're not Jin-san.' Hiro pouted.

Ema got up. 'I'm gonna get the guy a futon. I don't mind sleeping on the sofa.'

Yuzuru's eyes widened a little. 'Who said that he was staying here for the night?'

'I did, cuz this is _my_ house.' He slapped Yuzuru on the back. 'Son, you gotta show some hospitality.'

Yuzuru sighed. 'Whatever.'

Takeru got up and bowed a perfect 90 degrees. 'I thank you all for your kindness.'

'Whoa dude! It's totally fine!' Hiro frantically waved his hands in front of his face.

It took a lot of persuading until Takeru actually said, 'I guess it's not that big a deal then...'


	18. Chapter 18

'What is this?' Takeru patted the top of the car, then proceeding to pat it everywhere.

'This, my friend, is a _car_.'

'A car? That sounds cool,' Takeru looked up at Ema from his squatting position on the ground. If he was trying to contain his excitement, his eyes had betrayed him. They were literally sparkling, though he was frowning.

Ema chuckled. 'Wait until you see how it works. Then you'll know how cool it is.' Takeru nodded and got up and got into the backseat. Shou and Hiro followed him in.

'How does this "car" work?'

'Shou, explain.'

'... Why me?'

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'So now,' Konami said with her legs crossed on the sofa, 'you're telling me that Tamakoma is getting _another_ Neighbour?'

Shou nodded. 'Yep. We'd like to enlist him on the next official Border Enlistment Day.' She glanced towards Takeru's direction. 'And we'd also like to train him up as soon as possible.'

Karasuma directed his gaze from his hands to Takeru. 'Why the rush? And why would a Neighbour join an organisation that kills Neighbours, to be honest?'

'Because my instincts tell me that Neighbours need to chill down. Or, in other worlds, they need to go to hell. Or just die.'

Karasuma nodded. 'But if you're an amnesiac, why do you know that Border exists?'

Takeru shrugged. 'Who knows.'

Commander Rindo lifted his coffee mug from the table. 'I should contact HQ now about having another Neighbour, and I'll try persuading them to let him enlist him.'

Takeru bowed a perfect ninety degrees. 'I thank you all for your help.'

Usami led him to the training rooms. 'So, Takeru, was it?' Usami extended a hand towards him. 'My name's Usami Shiori. Nice to meet you!'

Takeru took her hand and shook it. 'Kobayashi Takeru. Likewise.'

Usami sat down on her office chair. 'Would you like to choose your main Trigger first? Or before that, should I introduce how Border's Triggers work?'

'Id prefer learning about it all first. Thank you in advance for your guidance.'

Usami's glasses fogged up. _... He's too polite for his own good!_

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'I think I get it now,' Takeru said in a low voice. 'Thank you, Usami-san. You're a good teacher.'

Usami pushed her glasses up. 'You sure know how to hit on girls. Would you like to choose your main Trigger now?'

'Sure.'

'I have an idea,' Karasuma raised his hand slightly. The two whipped their head in his direction.

'Stop scaring us like this.'


	19. Chapter 19

Usami grinned. 'Yahoo! Osamu, would you like to try a ten rounds with Takeru?'

'I don't see any reason to refuse,' Osamu replied bluntly.

'Thank you for your time, senpai.'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

Osamu: 7

Takeru: 3

Usami sweatdropped. 'Takeru, do you want to try another Trigger other than Raygust?'

'Yes, please. I don't think I can fight anymore using this thing.'

Karasuma raised his hand to his chin. 'Takeru. Answer me truthfully. Was the Raygust good to fight with?'

'I'm sorry, but no.'

He let out an overly dramatical gasp. 'I always thought that the Raygust was an excellent Trigger.'

'Really?' Konami shouted, surprised.

Karasuma looked at her. 'I was lying.'

Konami turned towards Takeru. 'You lied to me?' She gradually stepped towards Takeru, the latter waving his hands in front of him as he tried to back away, only for his back to meet the wall.

'You're gonna pay for that~!'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

'Does Scorpion sound better?'

'Yes, thank you. I think I would fight better with lighter weapons.'

'Lets go for another ten rounds, then.'

Usami, Karasuma, Konami, Shou and Hiro stared at the broadcast with interest.

Takeru seemed to move around better; perhaps due to the lighter weight of the weapons. He was already father agile, jumping from one building to another without any real difficulty. He'd found Osamu in less than a minute, and was silently following him from a distance. Osamu seemed like he had noticed his presence, and was on full alert, Asteroid already in hand. Takeru creeped along, until he was directly opposite of the building that Osamu was on.

He didn't waste time to wait for Osamu to move. He rolled down, his double Scorpion flashing at his sides, and stabbed down. Osamu also attacked, shouting 'Asteroid!' as the trion cubed directed themselves at Takeru. The attack didn't land, as the Scorpions had already been impaled down into his torso.

 _Mikumo, bail out._

'That wasn't too bad. To be honest, not bad at all.'

'Thank you.'

Usami sat back down in her office chair and asked Takeru to out his Trigger down. 'I'll modify it for you, and I'll add a few things. While I do that, you should go to HQ to enlist under Tamakoma branch. It's more effective this way.'

'Thanks, Shiori. Let's get going.'


	20. Chapter 20

Takeru followed Karasuma through HQ. The more they walked, the more he could feel the stares directed at him.

'Don't worry, you didn't do anything wrong, it's just peculiar to see a new recruit at times when it isn't enlistment day yet.'

He nodded in response.

A few more turns at corners, Karasuma abruptly stopped, and Takeru nearly crashed into his back.

'We're there.'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

Shou was completely focused on her phone, scrolling through the list of new recruits, checking out their first battle stimulation videos and statistics. She stopped particularly long at one name, scrunching her eyebrow together in confusion, but that wasn't for long since she had figured out who they were.

'Seems like I was too naive to think that they wouldn't find me here...'

She locked her phone and stood up. _Should I find Jin? Or should I keep it to myself for the moment?_ She clenched her teeth, contemplating her choices.

 _I'm going to find Jin._

Calling Jin, who should be off-duty at that time, she waited for him to pick up.

'... Hello? Shou?'

'Jin-san. Are you free? Right now, I mean. It's rather important.'

'Lounge in five. I'll be right there.'

'Thanks.'

She walked briskly to their meeting point, not wanting to be late, but Jin was already waiting, munching on a packet of Bonchiage.

'Whats so urgent, Shou?'

'Jin-san. Please, read my future.'

'Now that's an unusual request, especially from you.' He grinned a little. 'What's gotten you so interested?'

'Please, Jin-san. I need to know what's going to happen. It concerns the safety of Mikado. Or even, the whole earth.'

Jin's expression darkened almost immediately, the mood becoming a tad more serious than before.

'Alright. How far do we need to go?'

'About a month.'

'I'll try. Let's have a seat first.'

They sat down, and Jin stared off into God knows where. It intrigued Shou, how Jin's side effect worked. How he could see so many variations of the future at one time, and how he managed to keep track of all the turning-points leading to different possibilities.

A while later, Jin snapped back into reality.

'How was it?'

'What the heck have you gotten yourself into?' He chuckled after asking her in a monotone voice. 'What outcome do you want?'

'That of the least deaths.'

'So you're prepared for it all, huh? If you still plan on finding that newbie you recognised, don't. It'll end up with either one of you dead before anything happens. It's best if you checked up on your left eye, it seems to need... Repairing? What the heck? Whatever, the route leading to the least deaths include your own. Is that fine with you?'

'Yes.' She looked Jin in the eyes. 'Please continue.'

'Actually, there'd only be two deaths from Border. Yours and one other. No other casualties. And of course, tons of trion soldiers.' He smiled faintly, hoping to lighten the mood. 'Just don't see that new recruit, or headquarters will be taken down completely. Not just the building, all the people too. Border would be ruined. _Literally_.'

'I promise I won't.'

'Then that's one hurdle gone. Next is an invasion next week.'

'How big?' Shou got her phone out and prepared to type out a report for him, so that he could skip the trouble of explaining to the higher-ups later on.

'It's rather small. You'll be at school then, so it to the agents on duty. They'll manage with no problem. I'll be there too, if that assures you more.'

'I see. I won't interfere.'

'After that are various small scale invasions, and about three weeks later there'll be a big one. The really big one, which you'll die in.'

'So, how do I die?'

'It was a one-on-one battle with a human neighbour. You killed them, but they were carrying a bomb.'

'Anyway to prevent that?'

'Afraid not. You were too far away from the main battlefield. The rest only found out when they couldn't contact you. And that's about it. Within this month, you die.'

'Thank you for your time and effort.'

'Though I'm not in the position to say this, don't think about it too much. Overthinking will only mess up the future even more.'

'Thanks for the advice.' She stood up, bowed a but, and headed home.

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

'Yuzu-kun, what would you do if I died?'

Yuzuru choked on his fried rice. He grabbed a glass of water, chugged it down, swallowed, and blinked.

'What the heck?'

'Answer honestly. What would you do if I died?'

'Probably regret why I let you die, after I promised I would protect you.'

'You still remember that from when we were kids? I'm surprised.'

'Oi. My memory isn't that bad. Why the sudden question, though?'

'Nothing. Just an 'if'.'

'Then promise me now that you won't die, until you get all old and measly and die of old age.' He held out his right hand, pinky stretched.

Shoud's facial muscles tensed, but loosened up as the corners of her mouth twitched up. Yuzuru noticed and smiled. Fingers intertwined, they recited their promise.

'Finger cut off, ten thousand fist punchings...'


	21. Chapter 21

It's Valentine's Day, and Kazama is feeling awkward. He had returned to his squad's preparation room after patrolling earlier that day. And so now, he and his team were just sitting there in awkward silence, doing whatever.

Kazama glared at his homework. Two essays, and one research project. He twirled his pen, the blunt end tapping on the table.

He looked up from his papers, and stared at Kikuchihara who was twitching in the couch opposite of him.

'Kikuchihara. Is something the matter? You've been staring at me for the whole time I've been trying to do my work.'

'Its nothing,' he replied as casually as he could, in his normal monotone voice. That didn't stop Kazama from noticing his uneasy aura, though.

'Whatever you're worrying about, it's showing in your eyes.' Kazama sighed and put his pen down after clicking it. 'Tell me.'

'It's no use to try hiding things from you, Kazama-san... You know today's Valentine's, right?'

'Of course, what about that?'

'Actually...' Kikuchihara dragged his bag from under the table and rummaged through it. 'I made complimentory chocolate for you all. This squad is starting to feel like my second home. Well, actually Border is, since I stay over for most of the day, but you three are probably the most important people in my life next to family. I'd like you to accept this.'

He waited for a response.

'Just like I thought, that was weird, right?' He sighed and was about to back the boxes of sweets into his bad but was stopped.

'Of course that wasn't weird,' Utagawa grinned. 'That's probably the most affectionate thing you could've done. Never guessed you would actually do it though.'

'Kikuchihara, it's nice for you to think of us like that.' Mikami smiled at him. 'Why would you even think that we wouldn't like your gift?'

'You guys are definetely the best.' Kikuchihara could feel the corners of his lips twitching up, but he didn't try to force it back down.

'Happy Valentine's Day.'


	22. Chapter 22

It had only been four days after Jin's warning. Small invasions had become more and more frequent, and agents had to be on patrol far more frequently than before.

Tachikawa yawned, bringing his hand to his mouth, covering it politely. He had been on night-shift, but it wouldn't end until noon. Patrols were now conducted with fewer people per group, since they had to make them as frequent as possible.

'It's just one more hour,' Izumi noted, after stretching next to him.

'One more hour, and we can eat...'

'More like, take a nap, in your case.'

He chuckled. 'You're right.'

So far, no ememies had been detected. The last neighbour they fought was probably the tiny Mormods they saw at around four in the morning.

'Eh? Who's that I see over there?' Izumi placed a hand over his eyes, as if looking for something, or someone.

Tachikawa followed his line of sight. 'Isn't that Kazama?'

'You're right. Who are those people following him?'

Kazama seemed unwary of the people following him. He strides down the road, heading towards the college that he, and also Tachikawa, studied at.

'I know those three, they're the thugs infamous at college.'

'But if they're following him, then doesn't it mean that...?'

 _'Gate activity warning. Attention citizens: Gate activity detected within the Forbidden Zone. Take appropriate measures.'_

'Tachikawa-san?'

They could only look on as Kazama got backed into a corner by the three.

'Crap, crap crap crap crap.' Tachikawa glanced at the appearing neighbour -two Bamsters and a few Mormods- and back to where Kazama was. Said person had their hands crossed in front of his face in a defensive manner, ready to receive hits form the thugs.

'Tachikawa-san, go! We're wasting time standing here!' Izumi shouted at him before he leapt forward, hitting the Bamster on the head.

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

Kazama's head was tilted up by one of the three, who, he could recognise only because of his ridiculous tattoos on his face.

'Think you're so smart, eh? Acting all high and mighty, just because you're a Border agent?' Tattoos, as Kazama called him, kicked him in the gut, and Kazama fell down on his bottom.

'Your height really doesn't match your ego, maybe you're just a kid playing pretend hero?'

Hearing nothing as response, he kicked him again. 'Answer me, you snotty brat!' The other two, Piercings and Shaved Head, sneered at him from behind.

He raised his hands again in front of his face once again.

'If you're really from Border, why don't you use your trigger?'

Another kick.

He could hear Shaved Head whisper, 'That's because he's not from Border. Just a kid whose delusions went too real.'

Another kick.

'Stop your delusions already, brat.'

He prepared for another kick and squeezed his eyes shut.

The kick never came, and instead painful cries came from the three.

He blinked his eyes open.

'Having some fun here, eh? Why not let me join in?'

Kazama mentally cried tears of joy as he saw who had come. The three jumped at their sudden appearance, and scramble out of the alley.

'Not feeling so good, eh?' They held out a hand.

He reached out and was pulled up. 'Thanks, Tachikawa...'

Tachikawa held a peace sign out. 'There's nothing the captain of A rank team number one can't do!'

'It's obvious that you can't even complete essays on time.'

'Don't sweat the small things!' He waved his hand dismissively, then grinned at him. 'In shape to kill a few Neighbours?'


	23. Chapter 23

To say that Tsuji's girl anxiety wasn't serious was definitely a lie.

From a radius of three meters, he could already tell if a girl was coming or not. Within a one meter radius, he would already want to leave or most probably, run away.

Sitting in a room with females in a room was bad, too. He couldn't think straight, as Shinoda's endless briefing session went on. Ninomiya was sitting with his legs crossed, hand holding a pen and tapping restlessly against the blank paper he had brought for note taking. Inukai had a serious looking face on, but he was tapping his feet, showing his boredom.

 _Same,_ he wanted to say and pat them on the back. _I can't wait to get out of this room._

Shinoda finally stopped at one point. 'Any questions?'

He mentally sighed in relief. _Finally done._

'Then, you're all dismissed.'

The agents slowly stepped out of the meeting room, either stretching, yawning, or trying to out on a straight face.

His shoulder bumped into someone. He muttered a small sorry and turned around. 'Are you alright?'

'Yes, I'm alright. Sorry for that.'

 _Oh. The girly boy._

Shou gave him the creeps. The ones that came whenever a girl came too close, and he would start muttering incoherent words and panic. _I'm not even_ _sure if he's a guy or not._

'Tsuji-san? You don't look too good. Your face is pale.'

 _Who_ _wouldn't be? After Shinoda's stupid and useless briefing session which reminded us of facts we were told so many times, who wouldn't be?_

He gently pushed down his hand, which was about to meet with his own forehead. He jolted at the contact he made himself, puzzling the younger. His girl alert was on in his brain, siren blazing, and shouting: _GIRL ALERT! GIRL ALERT!_

He told his brain to shut up.

Shou's single green eye stared him down from behind his glasses lens. 'Are you sure? It'll be better for us all if you were at top condition at all times.'

He could feel the cold sweat at the back of his neck. _Kid sure is crazy..._

Tsuji took a step backwards and wiped this neck with his sleeve. 'Yes, I'm sure. And I'm guessing that you have more important things to worry about than my health.'

Seeing the shorter pale slightly, he celebrated mentally. _Finally, I said something that made the kid shut up for a sec!_ Not that he thought he was annoying, but the 'girl vibes' he gave him were too strong for him to deal with. He could feel his girl alert coming back again.

 _Shut up, brain._

'Then, I'll be off now. Take care, Tsuji-san.' Shou bowed slightly and left.

He left out a sigh he didn't know he was holding in. _Now I can relax..._

'Tsuji.' Ninomiya's serious voice came from behind him.

 _Or maybe not..._

'Ninomiya-san?'

'That kid was right. You don't look too good.'

'I swear, I'm fine. Don't worry, Ninomiya-san.'

Ninomiya raised an eyebrow, slightly suspicious. 'Your complexion doesn't tell me that. Come with me.'

He didn't leave time for him to collect himself before walking away in long, even strides.

His shoes clicked on the floor rhythmically, leading him back to their squad room.

'Was it your anxiety again?'

He shook his head.

Eyes narrowed, Ninomiya sighed. 'You know that you can't hind these things from me, don't you?'

Tsuji lowered his gaze, nodding slightly, affirming his previous question.

Sighing again, Ninomiya sat down next to him. 'We'll have to do something about it. I don't want this being a handicap in your combat. Now, I'll ask you a few questions. Answer me truthfully.'

He nodded again.

'First off, why are you so anxious around girls?'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

Ninomiya now had a better idea of why Tsuji had his 'girl anxiety'. Growing up without much interaction with girls, he feels uncomfortable around them, since he had near zero experience with girls.

Ninomiya cursed mentally, cursing at Tsuji's anxiety and the stupid reason why it existed .

'I think we have to solution to your problem.'

Eyes focused on him, Tsuji asked, 'what is it?'

 _Can't find many people who are willing to learn or fix their mistakes nowadays._

Sighing, he crossed his legs and leaned further back into his seat. 'Just interact with females more. You're probably stressed out over how to respond normally, but if that's settled, it should be fine.'

Tsuji thanked his guidance and left, promising to perform better in this aspect in the near future.

 _Honestly, young people nowadays..._


	24. Chapter 24

To say that Tsuji's girl anxiety wasn't serious was definitely a lie.

From a radius of three meters, he could already tell if a girl was coming or not. Within a one meter radius, he would already want to leave or most probably, run away.

Sitting in a room with females in a room was bad, too. He couldn't think straight, as Shinoda's endless briefing session went on. Ninomiya was sitting with his legs crossed, hand holding a pen and tapping restlessly against the blank paper he had brought for note taking. Inukai had a serious looking face on, but he was tapping his feet, showing his boredom.

 _Same,_ he wanted to say and pat them on the back. _I can't wait to get out of this room._

Shinoda finally stopped at one point. 'Any questions?'

He mentally sighed in relief. _Finally done._

'Then, you're all dismissed.'

The agents slowly stepped out of the meeting room, either stretching, yawning, or trying to out on a straight face.

His shoulder bumped into someone. He muttered a small sorry and turned around. 'Are you alright?'

'Yes, I'm alright. Sorry for that.'

 _Oh. The girly boy._

Shou gave him the creeps. The ones that came whenever a girl came too close, and he would start muttering incoherent words and panic. _I'm not even_ _sure if he's a guy or not._

'Tsuji-san? You don't look too good. Your face is pale.'

 _Who_ _wouldn't be? After Shinoda's stupid and useless briefing session which reminded us of facts we were told so many times, who wouldn't be?_

He gently pushed down his hand, which was about to meet with his own forehead. He jolted at the contact he made himself, puzzling the younger. His girl alert was on in his brain, siren blazing, and shouting: _GIRL ALERT! GIRL ALERT!_

He told his brain to shut up.

Shou's single green eye stared him down from behind his glasses lens. 'Are you sure? It'll be better for us all if you were at top condition at all times.'

He could feel the cold sweat at the back of his neck. _Kid sure is crazy..._

Tsuji took a step backwards and wiped this neck with his sleeve. 'Yes, I'm sure. And I'm guessing that you have more important things to worry about than my health.'

Seeing the shorter pale slightly, he celebrated mentally. _Finally, I said something that made the kid shut up for a sec!_ Not that he thought he was annoying, but the 'girl vibes' he gave him were too strong for him to deal with. He could feel his girl alert coming back again.

 _Shut up, brain._

'Then, I'll be off now. Take care, Tsuji-san.' Shou bowed slightly and left.

He left out a sigh he didn't know he was holding in. _Now I can relax..._

'Tsuji.' Ninomiya's serious voice came from behind him.

 _Or maybe not..._

'Ninomiya-san?'

'That kid was right. You don't look too good.'

'I swear, I'm fine. Don't worry, Ninomiya-san.'

Ninomiya raised an eyebrow, slightly suspicious. 'Your complexion doesn't tell me that. Come with me.'

He didn't leave time for him to collect himself before walking away in long, even strides.

His shoes clicked on the floor rhythmically, leading him back to their squad room.

'Was it your anxiety again?'

He shook his head.

Eyes narrowed, Ninomiya sighed. 'You know that you can't hind these things from me, don't you?'

Tsuji lowered his gaze, nodding slightly, affirming his previous question.

Sighing again, Ninomiya sat down next to him. 'We'll have to do something about it. I don't want this being a handicap in your combat. Now, I'll ask you a few questions. Answer me truthfully.'

He nodded again.

'First off, why are you so anxious around girls?'

=3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3= =3=

Ninomiya now had a better idea of why Tsuji had his 'girl anxiety'. Growing up without much interaction with girls, he feels uncomfortable around them, since he had near zero experience with girls.

Ninomiya cursed mentally, cursing at Tsuji's anxiety and the stupid reason why it existed .

'I think we have to solution to your problem.'

Eyes focused on him, Tsuji asked, 'what is it?'

 _Can't find many people who are willing to learn or fix their mistakes nowadays._

Sighing, he crossed his legs and leaned further back into his seat. 'Just interact with females more. You're probably stressed out over how to respond normally, but if that's settled, it should be fine.'

Tsuji thanked his guidance and left, promising to perform better in this aspect in the near future.

 _Honestly, young people nowadays..._


	25. UPDATE

Hello everyone! I hope you still remember who am I and what this fic was all about, and I'm here (albeit _very_ late) to announce that Matchmaker will be rewritten. The pre-existing chapters will be all fancied up soon, and the remaining requests will also be written in due time. I'm really, really sorry for the year-long hiatus, but I'll try my best to continue the story from here on out! Thanks a lot for sticking by these past two years!

When all the chapters have been rewritten, this chapter will be deleted, and a new 'UPDATE' notice will be put up. After that, once the next chapter updates, it'll disappear too. Thanks again!


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